ZAMBIA INDEPENDENCE BILL
HL Deb 20 July 1964 vol 260 cc454-71 454 455
§ Order of the Day for the Second Reading
read.
THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMONWEALTH RELATIONS AND FOR THE
COLONIES (THE DUKE OF DEVONSHIRE)
My Lords,
I have it in command from Her Majesty the Queen to acquaint the House that Her
Majesty, having been informed of the purport of the Zambia
Independence Bill, has consented to place Her prerogative and interest, so
far as they are affected by the Bill, at the disposal of Parliament for the
purposes of the Bill.
My Lords, I beg to move
that the Bill be now read a second time. The Zambia
Independence Bill makes provision for the ending of Her Majesty's
protection over Northern Rhodesia on October 24 of this year, on which date the
territory will become the independent sovereign Republic of Zambia, when, at
her Government's request, we look forward to welcoming Zambia as a member of
the Commonwealth. Northern Rhodesia has
enjoyed internal self-government since January this year. During this period
the country has continued its steady development, and I am sure the House will
agree that Dr. Kaunda and his Cabinet have displayed an impressive combination
of energy and responsibility, and have demonstrated their ability in wide
fields.
Shortly after the territory
became self-governing, Her Majesty's Government were in touch with the
Government of Northern Rhodesia in regard to the further steps necessary to
move forward to full independence, and it was eventually agreed that the
Independence Conference should open in London
on May 5. The Report of that Conference has been published as a White Paper
(Cmnd. 2365). In all its sessions, except the first and the last, the
Conference met under the chairmanship of Mr. Richard Hornby, the Parliamentary
Under-Secretary. As some noble Lords may be aware, tributes have been paid in
another place to the way in which he helped forward the work of the Conference
and I wish to associate myself fully and most warmly with these sentiments.
With the exception of Cyprus,
which was of course sui generis, 456 all our territories have hitherto gone
into independence with a monarchical form of government, and with the Queen
represented by a Governor-General. We are, therefore, breaking new ground in
that Zambia,
will move straight from its present status as a protectorate to that of an
independent sovereign republic. I am quite sure that this should not be taken
in any way as an indication that our friends in Northern
Rhodesia have any antipathy to the connection with the Crown.
Rather it should be seen as a realistic acceptance, right at the outset, of
what many African countries have found, after only a brief period of
independence, the medium best adapted to their political aspirations.
I might perhaps mention at
this point that Dr. Kaunda asked Her Majesty whether she would agree to be
represented at the Zambia
independence celebrations. Her Majesty asked Her Royal Highness The Princess
Royal to undertake this representation, which she very gladly agreed to do.
The Constitution of Zambia
will provide for an "executive" President. There may be those who
feel that, as this new Constitution is one which does not embody the particular
checks and balances which we enjoy in this country, for that reason it is less
than democratic and thus a step on the road to eventual erosions of liberty. I
feel that any such fears would be without foundation. I think it should be
remembered that there are to be a number of important features in the
Constitution, amendments freely and readily agreed by the Northern Rhodesian
Government, which are specifically designed to preserve the liberty and rights
of the individual, to limit the powers of the President, and to ensure that the
Judiciary will be independent of control by the Executive. Perhaps most
significantly, the Bill of Rights in the present Constitution is to be carried
forward into the Independence Constitution. It will be entrenched by a special
amendment procedure requiring a referendum, and there will be special
provisions for its enforcement. The Constitutional Council which was
established by the self-governing Constitution is not to be retained. The
Council has, in fact, never met; but it has been agreed that broadly parallel
functions shall be exercised, if needed, by a special Judiciary tribunal.
457 The Judiciary is to be independent,
and any amendment of the provisions in the Constitution relating to the
judiciary will also require the referendum process. The control of public
prosecutions is to be in the hands of an independent Director of Public
Prosecutions, whose relation to the Attorney-General will be comparable with
the corresponding relationship in this country. There is to be a Public Service
Commission for the Civil Service and there will also be a Judicial Service
Commission. This new Constitution will contain many features which do not
conform exactly with the Westminster pattern,
but I sincerely believe that it is a workable Constitution to meet the special
circumstances of Zambia.
Most important, because it reflects in essentials the wishes of its people and
has been freely negotiated, it is a Constitution which we may be confident will
continue.
I turn now to the position
of Barotseland. There has been a special
relationship, as many noble Lords may know, between Her Majesty's Government
and the Litunga of Barotseland since the earliest days of the British
connection with Central Africa. The British
protection of Barotseland has been exercised since 1911 through the Government
of Northern Rhodesia, and as that Government has greatly extended its services
generally through the whole territory it has similarly provided increased
services in Barotseland.
The approach of
independence made it necessary to consider new arrangements; and, following
talks last summer with the then First Secretary of State, the Litunga agreed to
take part in discussions with the Government of Northern Rhodesia on the
question of the future relationship of Barotseland with Northern Rhodesia.
Following lengthy negotiations the two parties agreed to sign a new agreement
to be known as the Barotseland Agreement of 1964, which would replace all the
old agreements and which would regulate Barotseland's special position as an
integral part of the new Zambia.
This agreement was signed in London
by the Litunga and Dr. Kaunda on May 18, and has been published as a White
Paper (Cmnd. 2366). This was a freely negotiated settlement, and one which will
provide very considerable safeguards for the special interests of Barotseland.
458 As we know, independence presents
many economic problems, and Zambia
will require both advice and, despite its copper revenues, substantial economic
assistance not only from Britain
but from other developed countries. The British Government have recently
announced a gift of £2¾ million to assist the Northern Rhodesia Government with
the funding of the short-term debt which was taken over from the Federation at
the beginning of this year, and in addition a long-term loan of £3 million, to
enable the territory to provide its share of the compensation for overseas
officials in Her Majesty's Overseas Civil Service. There are also to be talks
this coming autumn on aid for general development purposes.
Before commenting on the
clauses of the Bill which is now before your Lordships' House, I should like to
pay very warm tribute, in which I know noble Lords on all sides of the House
will join, to the work carried out by the Northern Rhodesia Civil Service. This
Service, together with the Northern Rhodesia Police, has long had an
exceptionally high reputation for efficiency and devotion to duty, and I am
glad to say that the figures we now have available indicate that a very large proportion
of the expatriate officers in these services have shown their readiness to
continue to serve the Government of Zambia after independence and to make their
contribution to the building of the new Constitution.
Noble Lords may have noted,
perhaps with some relief, that an Explanatory Memorandum has been provided with
this Bill. It has, as noble Lords know, been customary in the past not to
attach these to Independence Bills, and I hope that noble Lords will find this
a helpful, if modest, innovation. Clause 1 establishes the Republic of Zambia
on October 24, 1964. Clause 2(1) provides for the continuance of existing law
until otherwise provided by the Parliament of Zambia. Clauses 3 and 4 deal with
nationality matters consequent on Zambian independence and are on the same
lines as the Malawi
Independence Bill. This is the usual pattern when a British protectorate
becomes an independent Commonwealth country. Clause 3(1) adds Zambia to the
Commonwealth countries listed in Section 1(3) of the British
Nationality Act, 1949. Zambian 459 citizens will therefore be British
subjects or Commonwealth citizens in United Kingdom law. This clause
also provides that Northern Rhodesia will
cease to be a protectorate for the purposes of the British Nationality Acts.
The effect of Clause 3(2) is that persons who are British-protected persons
because of a connection with Northern Rhodesia will not lose that status until
they acquire citizenship of Zambia.
Clause 3(3) withdraws citizenship of the United
Kingdom and Colonies from persons who acquire Zambia
citizenship on October 24, 1964, and is subject to the exceptions contained in
Clause 4. Clause 4 preserves the citizenship of the United Kingdom and Colonies
of persons who become citizens of Zambia on independence, but who have a
substantial connection with the United Kingdom, by which I mean any person who
himself, or whose father or paternal grandfather, was born, registered or
naturalised in the United Kingdom or a remaining colony.
Clause 5 enables Her
Majesty in Council to provide for the jurisdiction, powers and procedure of the
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council in respect of appeals from the courts
of Zambia.
Provision may be made under this clause, both in the law of the United Kingdom and in Zambian law, to give
effect to the arrangements agreed at the Independence Conference by which the
Judicial Committee can be used as an appeal court for Zambia. Clause
6 deals with appeals to the Queen in Council from the Court of Appeal for Northern Rhodesia which are pending immediately before
independence. If arrangements are made between the Government of the territory
and the British Government for continuing and disposing of these pending
appeals, an Order in Council may be made by Her Majesty to give effect to these
arrangements. Clause 7 terminates the divorce jurisdiction of courts in Zambia in respect of British subjects domiciled
in the United Kingdom.
Clause 8 terminates all
rights and obligations of the Crown and the Government of Northern Rhodesia
which arise under any of the existing agreements, undertakings or
understandings with the Litunga of Barotseland. I would add that the clause
does not of course affect the Barotseland Agreement of 1964, to which 460 I alluded a moment ago. Clause 9
enables any necessary adaptations to be made in United
Kingdom legislation consequent on the independence of Zambia. Clause
10 makes supplementary provisions in respect of Orders in Council made under
Clauses 6 or 9 of this Bill or other Acts of Parliament. Clause 11 provides a Short
Title for the Bill, and repeals certain provisions of the British
Nationality Act, 1958, which become obsolete with the dissolution of the
Federation.
Before I conclude, I should
like to express, on behalf of Her Majesty's Government, the great pleasure we
have in being able to bring forward this measure. We wish the Government and
people of Zambia
a prosperous and peaceful future. We sincerely hope that the present warm and
friendly relations we enjoy with Northern Rhodesia
will continue with the new State of Zambia. Zambia is the latest addition to
the family of the Commonwealth. It will be the nineteenth country of the
Commonwealth. I know that I have the support of all Members of your Lordships'
House in wishing Zambia,
in this final step on the road to full sovereignty, every success in future.
§ I beg to move that the Bill be now read
a second time.
§ Moved, That the Bill be now read 2a.—(The Duke of Devonshire.)
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